Puppet of Ravana

National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy

Title : Puppet of Ravana

Accession No : 66/7/4260 (22)

The traditional puppet from Andhra Pradesh, Tholu Bommalata can be seen. This appears to be a standing Ten Headed Ravana leather puppet. He is seen riding on a Ratha and has a very ferocious look over his face. He also has demonious type of facial features like long fangs. One can also see Tripundra (three Saivite tilak) on his forehead, which is an important feature considering he was a Saivite devotee. He is seen in a fighting posture seated on ratha, holding bow and arrow in displacing form. He has a bag of arrows at the back of his ratha. He is seen bare- chested, wearing a dhoti, lightly jewelled and headgears or turbans. His faces and hands are shown using orange and blue colour.

Gallery

667426022A.jpg
667426022B.jpg
667426022C.jpg

Provenance

  • StateAndhra Pradesh

Condition

  • ConditionPoor
  • RemarksRestoration Required
  • Action NoteCR

Contributor

  • Community / TribeRao-Reddy

Dimensions

  • Measurement (CMS)109 X 77
  • Weight (GRMS)0.00

Significance

  • Socio economicTholu Bommalata is the shadow puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh. The group of performers were usually a part of a group of entertainers and travellers who were continuously moving across villages during the entire year. They often sang ballads and provided knowledge of Hindu epics and local folk tales. They often reenacted various stories from Hindu epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata.
  • ArtisticTholu Bommalata is considered unique for their large size. The puppets appear on the stage and a white curtain is set behind. The audience can only view the coloured shadows, but not the actual puppets through the light source.

Description

  • DescriptionThe traditional puppet from Andhra Pradesh, Tholu Bommalata can be seen. This appears to be a standing Ten Headed Ravana leather puppet. He is seen riding on a Ratha and has a very ferocious look over his face. He also has demonious type of facial features like long fangs. One can also see Tripundra (three Saivite tilak) on his forehead, which is an important feature considering he was a Saivite devotee. He is seen in a fighting posture seated on ratha, holding bow and arrow in displacing form. He has a bag of arrows at the back of his ratha. He is seen bare- chested, wearing a dhoti, lightly jewelled and headgears or turbans. His faces and hands are shown using orange and blue colour.
  • Inscription/Markings Yes
  • Reference"https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tholu_bommalata "
  • KeywordPuppet, Thola Bommalata, Andhra, Face, Leather, Shadow, Portrait, Ravana, Tripundra, Tilak, Ratha